With the daily round-the-clock rush to get as much done as possible and a growing culture that slowly points towards breakdowns and burnouts. getting enough sleep can easily take a back seat. Studies have shown that there is a particular time when your body should be given rest to optimise the benefits of sleep. From Bill Gates who makes sure to bag at least seven hours of sleep at night to Elon Musk who rests for six hours, on World Sleep Day, we list reasons as to why why you should not lose out on proper sleep.

Are you taking enough of your beauty sleep?

As it turns out, beauty sleep is not a myth after all! It’s actually possible to get a radiant glow by hitting the sack for a suitable period of time. Penelope Cruz, who gets up to 14 hours of sleep a night swears by it. Did you know that when your body is anticipating sleep, it cools down and the circulatory system increases the blood flow to the skin to give you the coveted natural flush?

Proper sleep boosts memory and creativity

Making memories involve three stages– acquisition, consolidation and recall. The first and the last stage can be achieved while a person is awake but the consolidation of the acquired memories is boosted only while asleep. Thus, without proper sleep, one can easily be forgetful, inattentive and slow. Also, sleeping better helps to perform better at work. Media mogul, Arianna Huffington told CNBC that she only became successful when she quit working around the clock and got enough sleep.

“I can tell you with authority that when I’m exhausted when I’m running on empty, I’m the worst version of myself,” said the entrepreneur. “I’m more reactive. I’m less empathetic. I’m less creative. And all of us can testify to that.”

Sleeping boosts immunity and cell repair

While one tries different means to preserve youthfulness, sleeping is among the easiest and fail-proof options available, says Dr Rajesh Chawla, senior consultant, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals. The cells in our body repair and rebuild themselves while we sleep, as the growth hormone functions only at night. If one does not sleep properly, this function can be impaired, leading to the tightening of the capillaries, which will, in turn, affect the flow of nutrients to the skin and scalp.

Risk of chronic medical conditions is lessened

Studies have shown that sleeping helps in the repair of heart and blood vessels and the healing of wounds is also expedited by resting. Prolonged sleep deprivation can lead to an increased risk of heart diseases, kidney problems, stroke and blood pressure. That is probably why many studies show that people sleeping for seven to eight hours tend to live longer.

Is prolonged sleep deprivation the cause of increased weight?

Not sleeping enough may be the reason for your unmanageable weight as sleep ensures a healthy balance of the hormone that stimulates appetite (ghrelin) and the hormone that makes you feel full (leptin). If you tend to have irregular sleeping patterns and don’t get enough rest, then the high ghrelin levels can make you feel hungrier.